Twenty-five minutes a day, five days per week, five weeks — just how hard can Focus T25’s Alpha phase really be? The answers online are a mixed bag.
Some say it’s surprisingly tougher than T25’s Beta phase and holds the most challenging workouts they’ve ever attempted. Others argue that the scaled-back Alpha phase falls miles short of Shaun T’s breakout hit, Insanity.
So are the Focus T25 Alpha workouts hard? Or are they somewhere in the middle?
Learn more in our full review below!
Before We Get Started…
Hey, I’m the Kyle and I’m the founder of Noob Gains.
What’s up?
I just thought I’d jump in here at the beginning to basically “cut to the chase” and reveal the overall rating for T25. Cool?
We rate Shaun T’s Focus T25 Program (all phases) 8 out of 10.
That’s pretty good!
While this program might help you lose some weight, it’s not actually what we recommend to guys that want to build an impressive-looking body with minimal effort.
So listen, if you’re interested in building noticeable muscle definition in only 3 workouts per week…
Without forcing down 5-7 small, tasteless meals throughout the day…
And without giving up your favorite foods…
You might want to check out Superhero X12 by Fit Mole.
Build a Superhero Body Without Training Like One
Getting in shape isn't easy. But this program gives you a real-life approach to building a leaner, more muscular body without obsessing over fitness 24/7.
Never heard of it? Well, let me fill you in on why it might be a better fit than T25.
First of all, Focus T25 makes you workout 5 days per week.
Now for guys that “live to train,” this probably sounds like a party.
But not for the rest of us…
Nowadays, we’re all busy as hell and we try our best to not let the few precious minutes of free time that we have slip through our fingers like grains of sand.
Personally, I’d rather train fewer days per week, and get back to watching Netflix.
On the other, Superhero X12 shows you how to transform your body in 3 very efficient workouts per week.
There are no unnecessary exercises and no time wasted.
If you can commit to 3 hours of training each week, you can create a great-looking physique…
And maintain it year round!
| Feature | Superhero X12 | Focus T25 |
| Beginners |  | |
| Intermediates |  |  |
| Workouts | 3x /week | 5x /week |
| Calorie Calculator |  | |
| Flexible Diet |  | |
| Mindset Guide |  | |
| 2-Day Workout Option |  | |
Second, there’s a ton of cardio in Focus T25.
Multiple times per week you’re hopping around, jumping in place, and sweating your ass off.
Now… I get it.
T25 is made by Shaun T, and all of his programs are supposed to be “hardcore”.
And I’m definitely not saying that cardio is bad. That would be stupid.
Doing cardio makes your body more efficient and healthy over the long term.
But what if you just want to look good?
What if you just want to put in the minimum effort that doesn’t leave you in a pool of sweat and still see a chiseled six pack when it’s all done?
Well, Superhero X12 shows you how to get a great body with the least amount of effort (and the cardio is optional).
This program uses the 80/20 principle to hone in on the most effective methods with the least psychological resistance to build a shredded body that meshes easily with your current daily routine.
You don’t have to turn your life completely upside down to get in great shape.
SX12 shows you how to do it so training revolves around you (not the other way around).
Finally, the diet calculations in Focus T25 may be ineffective for losing weight.
What do I mean? Well, the way T25 suggests how many calories you eat per day is… unscientific to say the least.
When you’re trying to lose weight, dialing in your diet is the most important part…
And if you’re caloric intake isn’t on point, either your weight loss will be minimal or it won’t happen at all.
Unfortunately, T25 has this weird “point system” that it uses to track calories instead of…
Oh, I don’t know… I real equation? Ever heard of it?
Alternatively, Superhero X12 comes with a full calorie and macro breakdown of exactly what you need to eat to achieve whatever fitness goal you want.
- Calories
- Protein
- Carbs
- Fats
It’s all covered. And the beauty is… you can really eat whatever good stuff you want as long as it fits in your nutrition numbers.
Yea, eat a piece of cake every single day if you want! You can still lose body fat!
Crazy, right?!
These are the reasons I think Superhero X12 is a great program.
- Save time by working out only 3 days per week
- Save energy by training smart (without cardio) and without burning yourself out
- Change your body faster with nutrition strategies based on science
But you don’t have to believe me.
I’m just a guy on the internet.
Click the button below and check out Superhero X12 for yourself.
Build a Superhero Body Without Training Like One
Getting in shape isn't easy. But this program gives you a real-life approach to building a leaner, more muscular body without obsessing over fitness 24/7.
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About the Creator – Shaun T
“This ain’t a concert … Why you woo-hooing?” – Shaun T (not sure if he actually said this, but if he didn’t, he should consider it)
Shaun T turned his unexpected college weight gain into a $350+ million enterprise. (Now, that’s not a story you hear every day.) After gaining the Freshman 50, Shaun T discovered his passion for fitness and eventually switched his major from communications to exercise science.
This decision later evolved into teaching dance classes, touring with Mariah Carey as a backup dancer, and becoming a Beachbody Supertrainer with 10 million DVD sales by 2015.
Now 19+ years after launching Hip Hop Abs (his first BB original), Shaun T is still the face of the platform with his hit programs Focus T25, Insanity, Insanity Max 30, and Insanity Asylum.
What Is Focus T25 Alpha?
Shaun T vaguely describes Alpha as T25’s “foundation,” but he never really clarifies what that means. Focus T25 is a body transformation program condensing an hour’s worth of results into 25 minutes per day, targeting the 42% of people who claim to not have enough time to train.
The five-week calisthenic-focused T25 Alpha phase requires:
- High-intensity cardio, core work, and bodyweight strength training
- Limited space — at least enough to jump, spin around, and lie down
- Basically no equipment
- Five training days a week (unless you split your Friday Double-Day in half)
- Twenty-five minutes per day (again, Double-Days)
- A phone or laptop to stream the workout videos
- No gym membership
For the true newbies out there, each Alpha workout also has modifiers demonstrated by a backup crew member (like, a trainer, not the audio guy holding the boom microphone). Also, feel free to repeat Alpha if you relied heavily on the modifiers during your first go-round.
Continue to the next section to learn more about the Alpha phase!
Alpha Details & Features
If you want a complete overview of the full Focus T25 program, including the Nutritional Guide, check out our full T25 review. Otherwise, keep reading for a sneak peek of the T25 Alpha workouts (including an official ranking on the unofficial Noob Gains Toughness Scale).
What Equipment Do You Need?
Nothing, except for a yoga mat or Core Comfort Mat for floor exercises — unless you have thick carpeting that can lessen the pressure on your knees, elbows, and palms.
But if the Alpha phase doesn’t completely whoop you, you’ll need dumbbells and/or resistance bands when you advance to Beta anyway.
Bowflex SelectTech 552 Version 2
Each dumbbell adjusts from 5 to 52.5 pounds. Rapidly switch from one exercise to the next. You don't need multiple dumbbells cluttering up your home gym.
T25 Alpha Schedule
The Foundation Workout Calendar is the only resource worth the memory space on your phone. (No offense to the program’s only real guide — the T25 Nutrition Guide — which is somewhere in the depths of the Beachbody On Demand search feature.)
The five-week Alpha phase follows a five-day-on-two-day-off structure, as follows:
* The Alpha phase has an optional Double-Day on Fridays, which is why we say T25 technically isn’t a 5-day, 25-minute program. Not feelin’ a two-fer just yet? If you can’t handle Shaun T’s wrath for 50 full minutes a day, save your second Friday workout for the weekend!
Although, for a more seamless transition to T25’s Beta phase, we’d recommend a true Friday Double-Day. There’s no “option” for Double-Days beginning on week six, and Shaun T even dares you to try them back-to-back once you graduate to Beta.
Cardio
Second to Total Body Circuit, Cardio is the Alpha workout you’ll encounter most often. It also sets the tone for the rest of Alpha — few (if any) rest periods, rapid-fire 30-second sets, and a few burnout* sets to pick up the pace and maximize each workout.
Alpha Cardio’s 40+ exercises include high-knee jogs, low kicks on toes, control squats, pivot lunges + touch floors, alternating knee lifts, and jump ropes.
* We’ll mention burnout sets quite a bit as we move forward. For burnout sets, Shaun T basically combines a handful of exercises into a massive superset with no rest and at near maximum intensity to increase the calorie burn.
Speed 1.0
As the name suggests, Alpha’s Speed 1.0 is all about quickness and agility. This somewhat rare Alpha workout (really, it only appears four times over five weeks) features 25 unique exercises and alternates between speedwork and stretching.
During Speed 1.0, you’ll see exercises like zig-zag hops, prayer hand knee bends, jog-it-outs, hop-hop turns, flat-back roll-ups, and Heisman crosswords.
If that sounds tame, think again. The Speed 1.0 workout ends with a nearly ten-minute burnout set to completely drain you.
Total Body Circuit
Total Body Circuit is arguably the most challenging workout in all of T25 (including Beta & Gamma). Not only will you question whether Shaun T rigged the clock to half-speed, but you’ll also come toe-to-toe with 40+ exercises with a burnout set halfway through and at the end.
Exercises are heavy on the plank, squat, and push-up variations. Get yourself psyched for spider-push-ups, plank sequences, rotating jabs, power squats, 180-degree squats and burpees, and hop-hop hooks.
As if all of that wasn’t enough, Shaun T ends the workout with two extra exercises — floor sprints and body runs.
Ab Intervals
Shaun T reserves the Ab Intervals for your Double-Days, though you’ll occasionally see them Monday thru Thursday. Ab Intervals lives up to its name ridiculously well, shifting the focus to your core muscles, including your rectus abdominis, hip flexors, and obliques.
However, it wouldn’t be T25 without throwing a bit of cardio into the mix. Don’t be surprised if you see moves like low plank holds, down dogs + planks, rocketmen, plank V-ups, lat pulldowns, and alternating heel taps.
Lower Focus
As if the regular Alpha Cardio workout wasn’t intense enough, Shaun T throws yet another curveball into the mix with the Lower Focus workout. This unorthodox cardio & leg fusion blends 40+ exercises and two burnout sets into a grueling 25-minute leg-burning workout.
Exercises include basic jacks, calf raises, deep lunge holds, abductor squats, deadlift taps, and hop-up squats + flexors.
Stretch
Every Sunday during T25 brings the same 25-minute stretching session (aptly named “Stretch”). This static-dynamic-stretch fusion jets through 44 different stretches to loosen up tight muscles and prepare your entire body for a new week of T25.
Stretches range from lateral lunge holds and hip flexor holds to calf stretches and cat-cows to “S” torsos and bent-knee hip-ups.
Not up for the seventh session with Shaun T? Hey, we can’t blame you after *gestures vaguely*. Luckily, Stretch is the calmest, zen-nest workout in the entire T25 program (we promise!).
STATurday
Corny? For sure. Jealous we didn’t come up with it? Admittedly, yes.
STATurday (STAT + Saturday = STATurday, get it?) is your one day a week to log your weight and measure your chest, waist, arm, and thigh for progress.
If you don’t already have an accurate bathroom scale and a measuring tape, now’s prime time to order them. You’ll need both for at least the next ten weeks — or 14 if you’re ballsy enough to take a stab at Gamma.
The Alpha calendar includes boxes where you can log these numbers from week to week. Or you can record your stats on a body stat app if you want to join the rest of us in the 21st-century.
Let’s Talk About Toughness
Now, here’s what we’ve all been waiting for — the official rating on the completely unofficial, we just made this up a little while ago “Noob Gains Toughness Scale.”
How tough are Focus T25 workouts really?
We’re not sure if it was intentional or not, but many users agree that T25 Alpha is actually tougher than the more advanced Beta, especially Total Body Circuit (go figure).
But despite being the “foundation” phase of T25, we wouldn’t dub Alpha “easy” for beginners. Unless you’re an Insanity or even a P90X veteran, Alpha will test your coordination, endurance, muscular strength, and mental willpower.
If you’re a newbie, the Alpha workouts will leave you drenched in sweat, muscles shaking, and begging Shaun T to slow the pace just a little.
Not to mention mastering the exercises will test your patience, and you’ll fight the urge to pause or resort to the modifier as you inch closer to the 25-minute mark. It’s no wonder so many beginners still can’t complete Total Body Circuit until they try a second go-through of Alpha.
We’d rate T25’s Alpha phase as a 6.8 on the unofficial, official Noob Gains Toughness Scale (not trademarked or copyrighted).
Typical Alpha Results
Whether you’re aiming for muscle gains or weight loss, visible progress typically takes about 6–8 weeks — meaning the five-week Alpha phase jumps the gun by about 1–3 weeks. But that doesn’t mean you’ll be at a complete standstill with the mirror until you reach Beta.
Between the five weekly workouts (six, technically) and 1,200 or 1,600-calorie nutrition plans, shedding 1–2 pounds per week and several inches — sometimes 12+ — is totally realistic.
Yes, it’s a god-awful program for anyone training for the classic bodybuilder physique. But if you’re cutting, need to lose weight, or want to generally “get in shape” and live an otherwise busy life, there’s no excuse to pass on this five-week phase.
It’s actually the most effective and realistic of all Beachbody programs.
T25 Alpha Pros
- Any excuse you had to not exercise is gone. A 2,000-person poll from 2021 revealed that the top excuses for bowing out of exercise were no time (35%), not seeing results (28%), and feeling too unfit (26%). The 25-minute-per day high-intensity Alpha phase with modifiers available essentially dissolves all three of those.
- It’s a complete calisthenic phase. If you’re a noob progressing from kneeling push-ups to standard push-ups (and so on), calisthenics can be just as effective as traditional weightlifting exercises for increasing muscular strength and thickness (study).
- Many users end the phase 10+ pounds lighter and several inches slimmer.
- Just about every exercise in Alpha (and Beta, for that matter) includes a newbie-friendly modifier. So even if you can’t complete Alpha without dialing back the pressure, the program is still reasonably doable. (Though we’d recommend repeating Alpha and/or Beta if you’re doing the modifier 25–50% of the time or more.)
- For beginners especially, Alpha is a great workout for nearly every fitness goal — weight loss, muscle mass, agility, speed, endurance, and more. Surviving T25 opens the door to more advanced Beachbody programs like P90X3, P90X, Insanity, or Insanity Max:30.
- Alpha’s six workouts are a journey. Not only are they seemingly randomly arranged (to keep you on your toes), but there’s more than enough variety to give you a much-needed breather between Cardio and Total Body Circuit workouts each week.
T25 Alpha Cons
- Womp, womp. Any excuse you had to not exercise is gone.
- It’s a letdown compared to Insanity or even Insanity Max:30. If you’ve survived either of those Shaun T programs, Focus T25 Alpha will be a downgrade.
- The momentum of Alpha fizzles out by the time you reach Beta. It’s a progressive program in a sense, but when Shaun T stacks a workout like Total Body Circuit into phase one, just about everything will seem “tame.”
- The Nutritional Guide (which we didn’t review here) is a bit restrictive at 1,200 or 1,600 calories per day. Sure, it accelerates the daily calorie burn for weight loss, but it’s a bit extreme for anyone who’s never dieted or lost a significant amount of weight.
Wrapping Up This Focus T25 Alpha Review
Alpha is hard for beginners, though the included modifiers are impressively welcoming. We’d actually recommend Alpha as one of our top choices for newbies looking to transform their physique (mostly weight loss) without living in the gym or splurging on pricy equipment.
If you’re dead-set on a Beachbody program to kickstart your total physique overhaul, Alpha is honestly your best bet. But intermediates and those who’ve completed Insanity (or other Insane-r) programs will likely find Alpha comparable to a warm-up.
Rating: 8.6/10
Here’s Another Option…
Shaun T’s T25 program will probably help you lose some body fat, but…
We recommend Superhero X12 for beginners that want to build a lean and muscular body with the least amount of effort for the long term.
Superhero X12 gives you more free time to watch Netflix and play video games since you only workout 3 days per week.
You’ll have more energy and feel great since you won’t be drenched in a pool of sweat doing cardio every single day.
| Feature | Superhero X12 | Focus T25 |
| Beginners |  | |
| Intermediates |  |  |
| Workouts | 3x /week | 5x /week |
| Calorie Calculator |  | |
| Flexible Diet |  | |
| Mindset Guide |  | |
| 2-Day Workout Option |  | |
And you can build muscle and lose fat faster since all the strategies in Superhero X12 are backed by the latest scientific research.
Check out Superhero X12 to discover more.
Build a Superhero Body Without Training Like One
Getting in shape isn't easy. But this program gives you a real-life approach to building a leaner, more muscular body without obsessing over fitness 24/7.
